Columbus Blue Jackets Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Scott Howson announced today that the club has reached an agreement with the Evansville (Indiana) Icemen to serve as the ECHL affiliate for the Blue Jackets and the American Hockey League’s Springfield Falcons for the 2012-13 season.

“The Columbus Blue Jackets are very excited to have the Evansville Icemen as our ECHL affiliate,” said Blue Jackets Assistant General Manager Chris MacFarland, who oversees hockey operations for the club’s professional affiliates. “Finding the right partner in the ECHL was an important priority for us this off-season. We are thrilled to be able to work with Head Coach Rich Kromm and look forward to having a great relationship with the entire Evansville organization.”

The 2012-13 season will be the first in the ECHL for Evansville, which was a member of the Central Hockey League the past two seasons. The Icemen will compete in the ECHL’s North Division with the Cincinnati Cyclones, Fort Wayne Komets, Kalamazoo Wings and Toledo Walleye. The club will play its home games at the 11,000-seat Ford Center, which opened in downtown Evansville last November.